Your Life Belongs To Me
by IchigoHatake
Summary: Final book in The Forgotten Doll trilogy. Five years have passed and Dio, Arisu, and Aya finally seem happy as Dio and Aya plan to marry. But as Arisu's past is revealed and Kuro appears, trying to steal Arisu away, this family will have to battle one last time before they can finally gain a peaceful life. Review please! Looking for an artist to draw a cover for me!
1. Chapter 1

Five years had passed since the Ogre incident and seven since I first came back to life. I was now twenty as well as Dio. Arisu is now fourteen. I've cut my hair short now. It suits me better and my hair was starting to get in the way. My style really hasn't changed much. I still wear a light blue dress similar to the one from my childhood.

Dio looks like a real man now. Besides the bandage around his eye, everything is different. He's been working out a lot, trying to strengthen himself so he could protect me. I get light-headed every time he takes off his shirt. His muscles are amazing and he has abs. His blond hair has grown a darker color, seeming close to brown now. His eyes have darkened as well. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to have such an amazing boyfriend.

Arisu has changed the most out of all of us. She looked more like a young adult than a teenager. Her hair was slightly shorter now. She'd asked me to cut it yesterday. Instead of reaching past her waist, it now reached about halfway up her arm, and she constantly threw it up in a ponytail. Her red eyes glowed brighter. Some might be terrified by eyes like that, but I found them strangely beautiful. She'd hit a huge growth spurt, already almost as tall as me, not that I'd ever grown much to begin with. Her...chest area had also increased and she wore a plain, white dress with lace at the bottom. It seemed a bit plain for her, but she made everything appealing.

"Mom, dad," Arisu squeaked, her voice nearly a whisper. She looked incredibly nervous and I could visibly see her palms sweating. "There's something I'd ,like to talk to you about."

I turned away from the carrots I was chopping and walked over to the door, calling Dio in. He dropped the axe he was holding and picked up the firewood he'd cut, bringing them inside.

Dropping the wood, he asked, "What is it?"

My heart beat fast in my chest. I had a feeling that I knew what Arisu wanted to discuss. "Arisu has something she wants to talk to us about."

Dio glanced suspiciously at Arisu and he followed me over to the couch. We both sat down together and Arisu stood before us. She looked nauseous now. She kept getting more and more nervous.

"It's okay if you aren't ready to say it," said Dio. "Besides, there's something I'd like to say too…"

Dio's face grew red, and Arisu smiled, reading his thoughts. She nodded in agreeance, and stepped back. Dio stood and fished around in his pocket. I stared up at him in curiosity. What was going on?

I clasped my hand to my mouth to prevent from screaming in excitement. He was on one knee! He had a black box in his hand! Was he really going to…?

"Aya Drevis," he said, opening up the box and revealing a diamond ring. "Will you marry me?"

Everything goes numb and my breathing slows. The only sensation I feel is my cheeks growing hotter. He just proposed! Eventually, the numbness faded and an overwhelming feeling ran through me. Before I even realized it, I was crying.

"Yes," I answered, a bit too giddy. "Of course. I've been waiting for the day you'd ask me to marry you, but where'd you get that ring?!"

He slipped the ring on my finger silently, dodging the question. I decided it was for the best that I didn't know. He leaned in, his forehead resting against mine. His breath warmed my neck and I found that even though we were inches away, we should be closer. I closed my eyes, chills going down my spine as I kissed him. His lips pressed against mine with a strange ferocity like I'd never felt before. I could feel by his kiss just how joyful he was that I'd agreed. I didn't care when, where, or how this wedding was going to happen, but my heart was filled with happiness. I'm getting married!

Arisu cleared her throat, drawing attention to herself. I broke apart from Dio and pushed my hair behind my ears. "I don't mean to interrupt this precious moment, but I think I'm finally ready to tell you guys…"

"Tell us what?" asked Dio.

"About my past…"

My hunch had been correct.

Dio gave a brief nod, remembering back to our fight with Ogre. There, a boy had encountered us, the boy somehow related to Arisu's dark past.

"Let me start from the beginning," she sighed, finally positioning herself on a chair. It made me feel nervous when she'd stand and pace around. "I was born in a no-good town. My parents were poor and had no where else they could bring me. At first, they had cared for me a lot, raised me to be the best I could become in that criminal city, but of course, a kid costs money, and they just started running out of finances." Arisu took the time to breathe for a second, and I knew the bad part of the story was coming in. "And when they went bankrupt, they became really stressed out. Even though I was young, I still remember their panicked faces. They looked _were_insane. Mom and dad...no, I refuse to call them that...Teresa and John, completely losing it, not knowing what to do anymore, they decided to make...**budget cuts**."

I tensed at the way Arisu said that. Budget cuts. The look of hatred in her eyes she'd had when she looked at Ogre appeared on her face now. Her eyes were blank at lifeless, but her face was contorted into a look of rage. She took a deep breath and decided to continue.

"'The kid is costing us too much,' John had whispered, thinking I was asleep. 'If we could just get rid of her, then maybe we could support ourselves at least. Maybe put her up for adoption?' 'That's too much of a hassle,' Teresa had hissed back, no sympathy towards me like any normal mother would have. 'Let's just kill her. Nobody will catch us, not in this blood-stained city. The cops can't handle all the murderers out here. And we don't have any friends or really know anyone here, so how could they know we had a daughter? As long as we properly dispose of the body, no one will ever know.' I would've expected John to be the one to plot out my murder, but here was Teresa, laying it all out on the table. John didn't even hesitate. He agreed with her 100%."

Arisu's glare got even icier. She didn't look like herself at all right now. Those red eyes no longer held beauty. Now I could see why people feared red eyes like that. I felt myself shaking and Dio wrapped me in his arms, and I could feel him shake ever so slightly as well.

"So what was the little girl lying in bed supposed to do, knowing her parents wanted to kill her? I did nothing. I continued to pretend I was asleep, thinking this was all just a nightmare. _But it wasn't._Teresa had walked out of the room and then she'd come back with her largest kitchen knife. John grabbed a large potato sack. And then they pounced."

My heart raced.

"John snatched me up, wrapping his arm around my neck. I was in a headlock. He then threw me into the potato sack and knotted it up tight. I was screaming. As loud as I could scream. But these citizens were used to hearing innocent people's cries. They wouldn't help me. Those heartless people didn't even think twice about that six year old girl…"

Tears ran down Arisu's cheeks, yet her expression of hatred, not sadness, was plastered on her face.

"Through that bag, Teresa _stabbed_me. Thrusting it in and out of my flesh mercilessly. I remembering begging her for mercy. 'Mom, I love you! Momma! It hurts! Stop!' She laughed psychotically and continued to stab me. I must have died then…"

"But you're alive," Dio retorted.

"Yes," Arisu said. "But I _was_dead. I knew I was dead, but my spirit refused to pass yet. Similar to you, mom. That's one of the reasons I wanted to help you back then. Because I had _experienced_that. I floated above my small body, watching as John picked me up and carried me off into the back yard. Teresa came out as well after grabbing something. Something that would help cut me apart and make it easier to hide me. She'd grabbed John's hatchet and handed it to him. Not knowing what was happening, I watched in terror, witnessing my own body being chopped up into bite-size pieces. Then, they gathered my pieces and threw them into the fire pit, then igniting me. I cried out as my body burned and no one could hear me. Somehow, I figured out I was dead. A spirit. Of course, a fire can't dispose of everything, so they gathered some of my remaining bones and spread them out over time. Burying some in different areas, throwing some away. And the cops _never_caught them."

Arisu's expression changed as she saw the horrified look on my face. She stared at me in concern. "Should I tell the rest later?"

I shook my head. "No. I want to know now."

She sighed and picked up. "After watching my parents as a spirit for so long, hatred began to bubble up inside me. '_I want to kill them,' _I'd thought over and over. And suddenly, a black-haired boy appeared in front of me, his purple eyes gleaming greedily in the moonlight. He looked around my age, but he was no normal kid. '_So you died,'_he laughed at me. '_But I see you desire revenge. I could arrange that...' _I listened to his words carefully. If their was any way I could give my parents some retribution, I'd do whatever it took. '_You are a very beautiful child. You'd grow up to be a true beauty. I can make you reborn, live again, if...you meet my demands. What I desire from you is simple. I __want__you. Once you reach the age of 14, coming closer and closer to fifteen, I'll sweep you away, making you my little slave. And that means, I can do whatever I want with you, give you any demand, and you must listen. Deal? Almost fifteen years of life for you, and the opportunity for revenge and then you spend a lifetime by my side. Is it a deal?'"_

Arisu started laughing. It was a forced laugh. "Thinking back now, that deal wasn't very fair, but I wanted to live again. After dying, it felt like I'd suddenly grown up. I had dreams I wanted to reach and one of them was murdering my parents as crazy as that is. I agreed. '_My name is Kuro. Don't about me. I'll be watching over you as your life goes on, and on the day you ripen, I'll return for you.' _And then, suddenly, I was alive again. I had the same body of a five-year-old, but with the mental capabilities of a killer. I was like a genius. The only physical feature of mine that had changed was that I now had red eyes. Sort of a way for Kuro to mark me. I didn't care about that though. I was busy plotting how I'd get revenge in such a pathetic and weak body."

Arisu smirked creepily. It was the face of a killer.

"Hahaha...it wasn't too hard to kill them, even as a child. As long as they were asleep, I could sneak attack them. I gently poured gasoline on their bed, one of their match boxes in my hand. They didn't wake up until I ingited them. I wasn't done with them yet though. As they burned, they tried to run and escape, staring at me in shock. Yes, I was alive again. I grabbed Teresa's kitchen knife she'd used to kill me and my hands were bloodied. It took Teresa a while to die. She begged me for mercy like I'd done with her. '_Please, don't kill me. I love you, Arisu...' 'You never loved me,' _I countered. And then, she never breathed again."

Arisu sucked in some breath and it sounded like a hiss. "Life didn't get better from there. I couldn't escape that town and I was incapable of moving my parents bodies, so I stayed in an abandoned house. But that house, apparently, "belonged" to someone else. Someone walked in and shanked me with a pocket knife, screaming for me to get out of their house. I cried as I stumbled down the steps, hitting my head. I ran into the forest, thinking that would be safer than murder town. I used my intelligence to find food and water and stop my bleeding, but I didn't last long before being attacked again. This time by a bear. I don't know how I got so unlucky as to be mauled by a bear, but it tore me up. I cried so hard, thinking that I'd wasted the life Kuro gave me, thinking I'd die. I didn't though. Maybe it would've been better if I had, because then Alfred found me and you know the story from there."

It took a while for the whole story to sink in. "You murdered your parents," I choked in shock.

"I don't regret it."

"..." I couldn't comprehend all of this.

"Do you hate me now?" she asked, sounding like her "normal" self again. But which side of her was really the normal side?

I took a deep breath. "I can't hate you. I love you with all my heart. It's just...I'm so sorry you had to go through all of that."

My words sounded like a strangled cat because I was sobbing. Arisu started to cry to. Dio hugged me tightly, pulling in Arisu as well until we're all calm again.

"So that Kuro boy is going to take you soon?" inquired Dio. "You're fourteen, nearly fifteen now like he said."

"That's right," Arisu sniffed. "Because I accepted the new life he offered and murdered my parents, I'll soon become his eternal servant…"

"He can't take you away!" I screamed. "Everything's finally coming together. We're finally becoming a real family. We've gone through so much. You can't leave us now, Arisu."

"But she doesn't belong to you," a voice snapped coldly. "She belongs to me."

"Kuro," gasped Arisu.

"My chariot awaits you, darling. Come with me now. Your time in this world is over."

(Attention: Looking for artists with DeviantArt accounts! I would really appreciate it if someone could draw me a picture of Arisu and Kuro. I want to use it as a cover. I would gladly put in a link in one of my chapters to your DeviantArt page and acknowledge you in the chapter as well. I would be overjoyed if someone could make a picture for me. I'd find some way to thank you! -IchigoHatake)


	2. Chapter 2

Dio jumped to his feet immediately, pushing Arisu behind him. "What do you mean she doesn't belong to us?! She's our daughter and I won't let you take her away!"

"Your daughter?" Kuro asked, his eyes cold and judgmental. "She isn't your daughter. She killed her real parents. Didn't she just get through with that story? I was listening in. So you should know that I have to take her away now no matter if you like it or not."

I stepped up beside Dio, shielding Arisu as well. "Dio's right!" I growled at him. "She is ours now. We took her in, we saved her when she could've died. We've protected her all these years. We loved her. You can't just waltz in and snatch her away. There's no way we'd let you do that. We're a family now. And even if it's fake, I'm the mom, Dio's the dad, and Arisu's our beloved daughter."

"Touching speech," snorted Kuro, rolling his eyes at me. "Now Arisu, will you step forward already. I wouldn't want to have to go and take you by _force_."

Arisu stared down at her feet, her hands clenched into fists. She looked confused. She didn't know who to listen to.

"If you want a fight, then let's fight!" Dio challenged. "If beating you is what it takes to keep Arisu by my side, then so be it!"

"Do you have a death wish?" Kuro asked in all seriousness. "No one has ever been so idiotic as to challenge me. It means certain death."

"That's what you think!"

Dio ran at Kuro, fists raised. As he went in for a punch, Kuro cooly moved to the left, dodging him with ease. Kuro wore a bored expression, as if this were all too easy. I knew that Dio was strong, but something told me he wouldn't win this particular fight.

Dio turned around and tried another attack, kicking at Kuro in an attempt to knock him off his feet. Kuro jumped, Dio's kick missing. Kuro then tried kicking at Dio himself, landing smack in the middle of Dio's stomach. Kuro smirked and his hands lit up with black fire. Arisu's eyes widened in fear.

She pushed me out of the way and bounded forward. She sprang out, throwing her body in the path of Kuro's fire. Arisu let out a heart-wrenching scream as the fire smoldered her body. Kuro swore under his breath and walked to Arisu, taking her in his arms. He whispered some sort of enchantment and the fire stopped, Arisu's skin starting to heal right before my eyes.

Kuro glared at Dio. "Look what you did. If you hadn't gotten in my way, that wouldn't have happened." Kuro's hand lit up again, but Arisu grabbed his wrist and his flames went out. He faced Arisu, staring at her in confusion.

"Don't hurt them," she begged. "Please don't hurt my mom and dad. I'll do whatever you ask, just please...they've suffered enough. We all have. There are enough open wounds as is. And they're just starting to heal again…"

"I never expected you to trust in human beings again," Kuro stated. "What's so special about them? I've seen over the years how happy they've made you. But...why?"

"I didn't think I'd ever love again either," admitted Arisu. "But...they were willing to help me. Even though I was strange, they weren't afraid of me. And they helped me escape that mansion. They said they loved me. We bonded. They were always there for me and you weren't. I remembered how you said you'd always watch over me. So why then? Why didn't _you_save me when I was being tortured? When I was stabbed, mauled, and used for scientific experiments?!"

"I wanted you to gain more and more hatred for humans," Kuro explained to her. "I wanted you to hate them as much as possible, I wanted your trust towards them to be eradicated. And then...I could be all you needed."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Arisu, pushing her way out of his arms. "You said you wanted me, but what does that mean? That you...love me? How could someone like you love? How'd you fall in love with me if I was just five then?!"

"Even a creature such as I seeks accompaniment," Kuro sighed. "You saw that with Ogre, yes? And like you, I have a unique ability. I could see certain bits and pieces of the future. I saw the beautiful woman you'd become and I wanted you to be by my side. I never saw these two in your future, however."

Arisu's P.O.V.

"Then what did you see in my future?" I spat at him.

"At first, I saw you with me. I saw you falling for me like I'd wanted, relying on me since you couldn't rely on humans. Now I see how the future can change. But I won't allow it to change. Follow me or I'll eradicate these two whom you call your parents."

I jumped to my feet. "You stay away from them!"

He rose up as well, an evil smile lining his face. He knew that he had me under his thumb. I heard it in his thoughts. "Then you'll come with me?"

My heart started pounding. The place he was thinking of...he planned on taking me to an isolated world where it would only be me and him. I'd never see anyone again. That horrified me. If I was afraid of anything besides the death of others and myself, it was being all alone. Not that I'd be completely alone with Kuro there, but I still had no desire to be trapped with him. What choice did I have though? I knew how powerful he was. He could destroy them in a second, leaving no traces behind.

"You swear you'll never hurt them?" I asked.

"Of course." Did he forget I was listening in on his thoughts?

"You're lying."

Kuro's smile faded. "That gift of yours is a bit troublesome. Fine. I swear I won't hurt either Aya or Dio...as long as they don't attempt to steal you away from me."

I turned around, facing my parents. They looked panicked, angry, and hurt. I could hear from dad's thoughts that he wanted to kill Kuro. And I heard the despair within Aya. 'We can never be happy without you,' she thought. And it broke my heart. Why? Dio had just proposed. The chaos had finally winded down. Why had I ever made that stupid agreement.

"Can I say good-bye to them first?" I asked, my voice coming out a whisper. I meant to ask it more firmly. If I sounded stronger, maybe he'd listen to me.

Kuro looked thoughtful. Yes and no ran through his head and I was earnestly surprised when he answered, "I suppose. Make it quick though. I have no desire to stay in this wretched world any longer. And don't think about running away from me. You'll regret that."

I gulped and nodded, walking slowly over to my parents. Mom was about to burst out into tears of frustration and Dad was about to punch through the wall. They knew they couldn't do anything for me. And what they hated the most was not being able to help someone in need.

Mom made a sort of whimpering noise and pulled me into her arms, squeezing the life out of me. I could sense she was about to cry.

"Don't cry," I pleaded. "If you cry, then I will and it will only make things harder."

"Why do you always have to sound so grown up?" she whined. "I should be the one giving you advice. I'm sorry, Arisu. I failed you. I can't help you even though I desperately want to. I love you so much. If you leave us...I don't know what I'll do…"

"Don't worry about me."

"Isn't it my job to worry?!" she protested.

"I'll kill him," dad hissed. "I'll kill that bastard. He can't just take you away from us. I'd rather die than let him have you."

"Don't talk too loud," I begged him. "If he hears you, you really will die."

Dad lowered his face, but continued to talk. "I _will_kill him. I promise I'll rescue you somehow. He can't expect us to forget about you. I promise we'll come back for you, Arisu. Don't you ever believe that we've forgotten you."

I felt tears pricking at my eyes and I knew had to leave before I broke down. "I love you, Aya. I love you, Dio. Mom and dad...I won't forget you either. And even if we don't see each other again, your faces will forever be engraved in my hearts."

I heard a whine escape from om and I quickly turned around. Don't look back. Don't look back. Dammit! Why'd I look back?! My heart sank as saw my mom start bawling, more than she had ever before. I never thought that'd be possible. Even dad was crying although he seemed so strong-willed. His tears were hot with rage.

I quickly spun back around and put my hand over my mouth. Don't cry. Don't cry. Dammit! Why don't I listen to myself? Kuro frowned as he saw my tears. I whimpered, but I couldn't be heard over my mom. Her loud tears rang in my ears and I wanted to run back and hug her, but if I did, I'd never be able to abandon them.

Kuro extended his hand to me and I took it nervously. Before we left, he snapped his fingers, and I knew he'd cast a spell of some sort. Suddenly, we were in a new world. And as I stared across the vast horizon of nothingness, I felt truly empty and alone.

"What did you do?" I questioned him.

"What do you mean?" he asked, playing innocent.

"You know you can't lie to me," I hissed. "I can hear you chuckling mentally. What did you do to my mom and dad?!"

"I didn't break our promise," he informed me. "However, you never said I wasn't allowed to erase their memories of you."

My heart shattered. I released his hand and fell to my knees. "No...you didn't...so...they won't remember me?"

"That's what I just said. I thought it would be easier on them if they just forgot you all together. It makes it easier for me too. Now they won't try and search for you. Not that any average human can enter my domain anyhow."

I didn't want to cry in front of him, but I couldn't help it. I started sobbing, screaming at the top of my lungs. "I hate you! I _hate _you! I _HATE _you! How could you do that? Even if we were a thousand miles apart, I wanted them to keep me in their hearts. Now...they'll just move on without me. They'll just think I never existed? That it was just them who faced Alfred and Ogre? They'll think they were alone all that time? Why would you do that? I don't want to be forgotten…"

I released a sound completely unfamiliar to me. It was a cry of longing, loneliness. My own parents wouldn't remember my face anymore? They wouldn't remember the times we'd laugh together? Cried? Fought for each other? They wouldn't remember the countless times I'd expressed how much I loved them. I never existed…

"I don't see why these hurt you so deeply," Kuro said heartlessly. "If you'll never meet again, then why leave them broken hearted? This was the best option. I promised I wouldn't hurt them as long as they didn't look for you. Now they won't be hurt and they'll leave us be. Now please, Arisu, stop crying. It pains me to see you this way. And you hate me? I don't think-"

"-I do hate you!" I screamed at him, biting the hand he'd offered to me. I sprang to me feet and started running.

I knew I couldn't go anywhere. I knew he'd catch up and contain me, but I needed to release these feelings. It felt good to run, although painful. I don't know how long I'd been running, but it felt like hours. My feet burned, I could barely see out of my blurred eyes, and my lungs were crumpling up, begging for air. Eventually, I couldn't run anymore and I collapsed.

I moaned and pulling my legs to my chest, hugging them tightly. I panted, trying not to hyperventilate as tears began spewing out again. Soon, I didn't have any energy left, and I dropped my legs, my arms shaking too much to hold them.

"Do you feel better now?" asked Kuro, staring at me impatiently.

I didn't respond.

He sighed. "Even if you hate me, I don't care, because I care for you greatly Arisu. It broke my heart when I saw you, a poor little girl's spirit mourning her own death. I wanted to help you and hold you. I decided to use my power to create new life for you. And this is how you repay me? You're acting like a child. A deal is a deal and you belong to me now. I honestly love you, Arisu. I hope you'll come to realize that."

"If you love me, then why are you hurting me like this? This feeling is worse than the feeling of my own mother driving a knife into my flesh. It hurts so much more. I remember what Aya once said. How love was the strongest tool in the world. That it could make you whole or rip you apart. And now I'm being ripped apart. If you're going to kidnap me like this and ruin my happiness, then I'll resist you with all I've got. Then, you can experience the pain I'm feeling...mommy...daddy...even if you won't think of me again, I'll always be thinking of you. I'll carry your will within me and fight him…"

Kuro hissed and snapped his fingers. I found myself within a large cage. I laughed weakly.

"What's so funny?" he snapped, irritated that I wasn't doing what he wanted.

"Oh, just thinking how your words don't match your actions at all. A cage. Yup. Everyone imprisons the one they love. It's only logical. Note my sarcasm. Being caged...I don't mind it much right now. It'll just remind me to continue fighting. So that someday, I can escape."

"I won't allow that to happen."

"You can't stop me. Even if I can't get out of the cage, there are other ways to "escape." For example, if I were to die…"

"You can't die here," said Kuro, a smile forming on his face. My eyes widened. I hadn't expected that. "The deal you made with me said you'd be mine for eternity. I did mean eternity. In this world, you become immortal. How do you plan to fight me now? It would be in your best interest to cooperate with me. I'm the only person you'll ever talk to again."

"You're still wrong," I said with a smile. "I shouldn't lose faith in mom and dad so quickly. No spell of yours could ever stop them. A bond like ours is branded on the heart forever. Even if you've scrambled their minds, their hearts will reach out to mine. And then they'll find me and you'll be in trouble."

"But I also said I'd kill them if they searched for you."

"Then maybe they won't be searching for me. Who they're really after might be you. They won't forgive you for doing this.

"That is, _if_they remember," chuckled Kuro. "And don't get so mouthy with me. I have powers you couldn't imagine. If you don't willingly fulfill our promise, I have other methods of making you mine, darling."

I glared at him and crawled to the back of the cage. I wanted as much distance between us as possible.

"I'll never let you beat me!" I shouted. "Mom, dad, and I...we never lose. _Never!_Use whatever magic on me you want, but I won't let you take advantage of me!"

"Go to sleep," he ordered, snapping his fingers. It felt like a heavy blanket loomed over me. I couldn't keep my eyes open. Damn you, Kuro. "Maybe you'll be less _ornery_after you rest for a while. I hope you'll behave yourself in the morning...it'd be to your benefit…"

"Curse you, Kuro…" I managed to snarl before falling into a magic-induced sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Aya's P.O.V.

I felt disoriented and confused. I stumbled onto the couch and brought my hands to my eyes, feeling something wet. Had I been crying? Why was I crying? Dio had a strange look on his face as well. It felt like I'd just forgotten something important and I couldn't shake the feeling.

"What just happened?' asked Dio in confusion. "It feels like I just woke up from some crazy dream…"

"I'm not sure," I responded with a sigh. But then I smiled. "All I remember is that you just proposed to me."

Dio smiled back at me, coming over and sitting next to me on the couch. I happily rested my head on his shoulder. Then, a shock ran through me. Not the electricity of Dio's touch, but a different sort of shock. It felt like someone should be teasing us right about now, but why did I feel like that? It had always been just Dio and me….right?

"Something's definitely wrong here," said Dio, slipping away from me.

"You think so too? Doesn't it feel like something's missing? Or someone? Something feels out a place. Something isn't right."

"I feel it too, but what?!" growled Dio in frustration. "As far as I can remember, it has always been the two of us together. But I feel like there's someone crying out to me...someone...who?! Why can't I remember?! This is insane!"

Suddenly, tears started coming out and I was whimpering like a dog. I didn't know what was making me cry like this, but I couldn't stop. Dio wasn't faring much better either. His face fell into a depressing look. He looked broken.

"I feel like we need to be somewhere," I growled.

"I know!" he hissed. "I know...what did we forget?! It's driving me insane! I'm about to punch the wall!"

I looked down at Snowball as he brushed my leg, the bunny looked upset and he held something in his mouth.

"What's this?" I asked as I snatched it from his mouth. My memory came rushing back. "That bastard! Too bad he wasn't able to erase this…"

"What are you talking about?" Dio grumbled.

I handed it to him. It was a photograph of Arisu I'd taken on her most recent birthday. I wanted it as a keepsake to see how much she'd grown. I'd hidden it in the floorboards with some other precious memories of mine. It's a good thing that Snowball dug that out, otherwise we'd never have remembered her.

"We forgot our own daughter?" Dio said, looking forlorn. "No magic should be able to erase someone so special to us."

"Don't worry. We'll get Kuro back for this," I assured him. "But first, we have to figure out where exactly he took her. And if it's even accessible to humans…"

"And if it isn't?"

I smiled. "We aren't your average humans. We've been through this a million times before. Do you really think we'll be beaten now?"

"We really could be killed this time," he warned. "Our luck can only continue to a certain extent before it runs out."

"That's a risk I have to take. I know he's stronger than all our other enemies. He took Dio to the ground, helpless, with just one of his attacks. But he had my daughter and mama bear was coming out. Besides, I think I can finally die happy. After all these years of being with the two of you...I've gotten all I need out of life. Although, it would be a bit of a shame if I died before getting the chance to marry you."

"I'm in this with you," said Dio. "But once this whole mess is over, we're moving. We need to get as far from Germany as possible. Nothing but bad memories linger here. If we make it out, promise you'll move to America with me."

I flinched a bit. I never expected him to ask me to move away. This had always been my hope. I'd been born here and I wanted to stay here. If I ever moved, I feared I'd forget about mother and father. I didn't want to forget them, even though they'd caused me a great deal of hurt. I didn't want to forget the good memories. And this cabin, it was my first real house too. I couldn't even imagine abandoning it.

"You don't like the idea of moving." It wasn't a question.

I sighed. "No. I don't. But I agree with your reasoning. After we save Arisu we need to move before someone else can track us down. America is called the home of the free. Maybe we really will be free there."

Dio nodded. "Now that that's settled, there's a bigger question. How do we even begin to look for Arisu?"

Arisu's P.O.V.

I woke up with an enormous migraine. It felt like the veins in my head were trying to burst out. I winced and rubbed my temples, but it did nothing to help. I was really dizzy too. I felt awful. "Mom!" I called out, but then I remembered I wasn't home anymore.

I gazed around me. I was still within the cage Kuro had put me in. I wanted to go home. Right about now, if I were home and had a migraine like this, mom would do whatever she could to make me feel better. She'd order dad to grab ibuprofen or maybe even an ice pack, anything that would ease my pain. I doubt Kuro would do that for me and I wasn't going to ask.

"Rough sleep?" asked Kuro, walking out from the shadows. Right now, he really looked like a villain. He was a villain. And I was his captive "princess."

"No, I only slept on an ice cold, metallic floor. I got the best rest of my life. In fact, it was so great I woke up with a migraine!"

"No need for an attitude," Kuro snapped at me. "If you're in pain, I can fix that. All you have to do is ask me nicely."

"I don't want any favors from you!" I spat at him.

He sighed. "If you keep acting like this, I'll have no choice but to...if you won't behave, I won't even warn you of the danger. I suppose you'll just have to find out when it's too late. Now I strongly suggest you apologize for your rude behavior."

"Or what?" I hissed. "You'll kill me? You said I couldn't die in this world. And if that's just a bluff, then please kill me. I'd rather suffer having a knife thrust through my head than this. And I'd appreciate it if you'd shut up! Every time you open your mouth, my headache gets worse."

"I can heal you of that," he replied. "That is, for the right price."

"Price?"

"I doubt you'd accept, considering the mood you're in, but I'll forgive you for your insolence if you kiss me."

"You're right," I laughed. "I'd never accept that."

"Why must you be so stubborn?" he sighed. "I'm sure that we could have a lot of fun if you forgot about those two humans."

"I don't want to forget them! They're important to me!"

"And you're important to me."

"Then...bring them here too!" I suggested hopefully. "We could all live together."

Kuro looked like he was considering it for a moment, but then shook his head. "I don't trust those two whatsoever. And besides, I grow jealous very easily. I don't want anyone else playing with my toys. Besides, the problem has already been solved. They don't know you anymore. But I know you. I'm the only one who will ever know you, so you really should be more friendly."

I gritted my teeth together in anger. "If you really wanted me to be friendly to you...what do you even know about friendship? Friends don't lock each other up. Friends don't monopolize people from their own families. And real friends wouldn't threaten each other. You seemed nice to me before, Kuro, but now I see you're really not."

Kuro's superior look disappeared, replace with a look of pure rage. My cage started to rattle and I screamed in fear. I knew he couldn't kill me, so some may say my fear was irrational, but he could still hurt me as much as he wanted. He could rip me apart and I'd have to endure that pain with no risk of death. He could allow me to suffer forever…

"I'm sorry!" I cried out. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

I kept apologizing over and over, tears in my eyes, until the rattling stopped. Suddenly, he teleported inside the cage with me. I recoiled as he came closer, backing myself against the end of the cage.

"What are you going to do to me?" I asked in fear.

He took hold of my wrist and pulled me closer, wrapping his arms around me tight. He...was hugging me.

"I wish you wouldn't hate me so," he sighed in my ear. "You have no idea how lonely I am. This vast, empty space is my home and most of my kind kill themselves because they can't stand the isolation. I've been longing to find a beautiful girl like you to spend my time with. I don't mean to frighten and sadden you. I just can't control my anger. Please...don't hate me."

The dark aura around Kuro suddenly changed. He suddenly seemed so sad and completely alone. I wanted to push him off of me, but I couldn't. I hugged him back, still crying. I then started to stroke his hair to calm him, since he was crying now too. It felt awkward, but it seemed like the right thing to do.

"D-Don't cry," I said, feeling a bit panicked. "Hey….come on. Aren't you a strong guy? Really...this is embarrassing."

But there was nothing I could say that would make him stop.

"Geez…"

Aya's P.O.V.

I grabbed a bottle off the shelf. Maybe, this could create some miracle to help us out. Dio had retrieved this for me from father's mansion. The bottle that had held the magic water that Ogre had given to me. I hadn't ended up using every last drop, there was just the tiniest pool of the water resting in the bottle.

"You think that can help?" Dio asked, sounding skeptical.

I shrugged. "It's the only idea I've got. Unless you have a better method…"

He shook his head and sighed. "It's worth a shot. But how would we use it?"

"Maybe if we believe hard enough…"

"Stop," he said. "This is starting to sound like some cheesy movie."

"Well, maybe if we dump the rest of this on the floor and think of Arisu, it could guide us to Arisu?"

"Let's try it."

I opened the bottle and tipped it over, letting the last of the water drip down onto the floor. All the while, I thought of Arisu and how much I wanted to find her. Then, something happened. The water started a reaction.

**I'll leave it there. Yay! Cliffhanger! Please don't kill me.**


End file.
